Ismaili.NET - Heritage F.I.E.L.D.

2005-05-(18-21) Ottawa

2004, May 21: He didn't attract as much attention as the Dalai Lama. He rarely does. But by the time he had slipped in and out of Ottawa on his private jet, the Aga Khan, spiritual leader of the world's 15 million Imami Ismaili Muslims, had given the city, and the country, a major gift. The Geneva-born imam, who is now based just outside Paris, has announced the creation of the Global Centre for Pluralism, which will be based in Ottawa.

2004-06-18 Toronto

2004, June 18: TORONTO - The biggest global threat is not failed states but failed democracies, the Aga Khan told a graduating class at the University of Toronto yesterday afternoon. The 49th hereditary spiritual leader of the Shia Ismaili Muslims appealed to the class of teacher graduates at Convocation Hall yesterday to instil in their students the virtues of pluralism, meritocracy and civil society - three pillars on which successful democracies are built.